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Delfina Crimp
Delfina Crimp was a British witch who was one of the most popular dressmakers in London in the 15th century. She invented the Severing Charm in order to make the task of cutting cloth and thread easier. Biography Crimp was one of London's most popular clothiers in the 15th century. The beauty of her creations struck jealousy into the hearts of rival tailors and her dresses made even unattractive women appear lovely. Every day, her popularity grew, and with it so did her wealth. In order to simplify the task of cutting cloth and thread, Madam Crimp invented the Severing Charm, a neat, accurate charm that replaced older spells that were liable to burn or shred whatever the caster was attempting to cut. However, because wizards and witches were persecuted in the 15th century, Crimp preferred to pretend she was a Muggle. Nonetheless, due to her phenomenal success, many of her rivals began to suspect that she was privy to a secret which they were not. A rival Muggle tailor, Snickerton, donned a disguise and applied for a job in Madam Crimp's shop. However, after several weeks, the only evidence of magic he had uncovered was the lack of scissors in her workroom. Hoping to catch her using magic, he decided to hide out in her workroom at night, wrapping himself in a bolt of velvet. He saw Crimp cutting out an intricate pattern with her wand, and the next day, he brought a group of men to arrest her. Taken by surprise at her shop, Madam Crimp could offer no explanation as to why she had no scissors. Snickerton ordered her bound, fearing she might curse them, and began searching her shop for a wand. However, he turned up nothing suspicious after several hours of looking, and his friends began to doubt him. Finally, Crimp asked to be untied so that she might scratch her chin, on which she had a large wart. Seeing no risk in this request, the men agreed, but when she touched the wart, it popped out of her face to reveal her hidden wand. Quickly grabbing a bag of gold, she Disapparated from the scene, never to be seen in London again. However, from that day on, every piece of clothing Snickerton tried to make mysteriously ended up sliced to ribbons, no matter how secure it was. According to legend, he died insane, believing a giant pair of invisible scissors was following him wherever he went. It is likely that Madam Crimp placed a curse on him as revenge for his plot against her. Magical abilities and skills *'Spell creation': Delfina mastered the highly complex magical art of spell creation, having successfully invented the Severing Charm in her lifetime. Given the immense difficulty and even danger involved in the invention of new spells, her success in his field shows her to have been a very gifted and powerful witch indeed. *'Charms': Delfina was highly proficient with charm-work, given how she was an expert at using her custom-made Severing Charm to cut items of clothing, which helped her fashion exquisite dresses. Her dresses were also said to beautify the wearer even if they themselves were not particularly beautiful, implying that she enchanted her clothing items as well. *'Apparition': Being an accomplished and skilful adult witch, she was able to Apparate at will, which allowed her to escape London in a flash. *'Dark Arts (possibly)': It appears that Delfina was adept at cursing to the point that she was able to affect Snickerton with misfortune for the rest of his life, which ruined any garment he made. Etymology *''Delfina'' is a Polish name derived from the word "delfin" stemming from the same language, which means dolphin. It cans also result from the Greek word "δελφίνι" (dhelfíni). *''Crimp'' is a name which denotes a fastener or a fastening method that secures parts by bending metal around a joint and squeezing it together. If it is an adjective, it is a synonym for "obsolete". Appearances * * Notes and references es:Delfina Crimp fr:Delfina Crimp pl:Delfina Crimp Category:British individuals Category:Females Category:Historical figures Category:Shop owners Category:Spell inventors Category:Tailors Category:Wizards